Congratulations to olly for correctly identifying the definition of sabrage, which is the act of opening a bottle of champage with a sword or sabre.

There are several legends of the story of Sabrage or Sabering Champagne write the authors of the aptly-named champagnesabering.com :

One says that when the officers of Napoleon’s army returned home after a victory, cheering townspeople would hand bottles of Champagne as tokens of their appreciation for their victory and gallantry.

Since the soldiers were mounted on horseback it was difficult to hold the reins of the horse and remove both the foil, wire basket (muselet) around the cork and the cork (bouchon) at the same time, so the soldiers simply took out their sabers and struck it against the lip of the bottle with an upward blow and sabered off the cork. Voilà!

Another says Mme. Clicquot (the widow Clicquot), in order to have her land protected, gave Napoleon's officers Champagne and glasses. Being on their horses, they couldn't hold the glass while opening the bottle.

Consequently, they tossed the glasses away, and took their sabers out and sabered off the top and cork and drank from the bottle. Voilà!

In more scientific terms, it is the meeting of the glass lip (annulus) at the top of the bottle just below the cork (bouchon) with a firm tap of a sabre's edge and at the weakest point of the glass seam in the bottle. When performed on a suitably chilled bottle of Champagne, the cork and glass annulus fly away, spilling little of the precious Champagne. The pressure inside a bottle of Champagne (100 psi) ensures that no glass falls back into the bottle making it safe to drink the spoils.

In either case, "The Noble Art of Sabrage" was born and the rest, they say, is history.

olly is the sole contestant to vote correctly, so let us raise our glasses and say “A votre sante” or sing “For he’s a jolly good fellow.” olly wins two points, plus a round trip for two to scenic Akron, Ohio, including free admission to the Akron Art Museum and the Goodyear World of Rubber Museum.

nharren is awarded the Daley-Diebold prize for casting his vote for K in a field of A through J. He wins an all-expense paid trip to Nonesuch, KY, with dining provided by the Rice Cake Café and lodging at the Brigadoon Motel.

But it is Elizabeth Creith who is the big winner. She garnered the most votes for her entry, receiving votes from tsuwm, etaoin, Jackie, and Fiberbabe. (wofahulicodoc was a close second with three votes.) Elizabeth wins the coveted Aubrey-Maturin Award, which consists of 8 points plus a genuine naval cutlass circa 1801, and a free two week cruise aboard the HMS Sophie. (The contest organizers and Hogwash, Inc cannot guarantee against the possibility of impressment into the Royal Navy. Certain terms and restrictions apply.) As runner-up wofahulicodoc wins a no-expense paid secret mission to Catalonia on foot, plus a copy of the Royal Naval Surgeon's Handbook, spattered with the very blood of Adm. Nelson himself(or so they say).

I exercised the Hogmaster's Official Whim by allowing so many entries that involved mention of a sword. Normally any one of these might have been considered too close to the actual definition, but the sheer number of sword-related definitions was a bit funny and did not spoil the game IMO.

Here is the full list of other entries, along with their creators and the votes that each received:

(A) :The final act of Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian's ballet "Gayane". There, a fantastic sword twirling dance movement -"The Sabre Dance"- dominates the third act. So much so that the third act entire is today known as the sabrage.-- themilum; received votes from BranShea, pennyless,

(B) the act of opening a bottle of champagne with a sabre-- definition; received votes from olly

Great ! great ! Congratulations Elizabeth C. and olly! Generous prizes. But really jealous I am of wofahulicodoc's runner up prize. Barefoot I suppose. I really would gladly volunteer to accompany. Live on wild food, count the blisters........Could we not put some money together to buy Alex a free ticketfor the Khatchaturian Ballet and make him join to do the whole " sabre dance" on high heels?Although I got no vote I still have this faint idea I won a donut somewhere along the line. (Nice round, thanks Alex)

Great ! great ! Congratulations Elizabeth C. and olly! Generous prizes. But really jealous I am of wofahulicodoc's runner up prize. Barefoot I suppose. I really would gladly volunteer to accompany. Live on wild food, count the blisters........Could we not put some money together to buy Alex a free ticketfor the Khatchaturian Ballet and make him join to do the whole " sabre dance" on high heels?Although I got no vote I still have this faint idea I won a donut somewhere along the line.

You may accompany the good doctor on his journey but in order to avoid detection you must be disguised in a bear suit. As for dancing in high heels, typically your prolific swordsmen will not themselves wear high heels, but if you ply me with enough champagne I might take a stab at it.

Thank you Dear BranShea and Pennyless for your votes. Your gullibilities are only exceeded by your good taste and brains. It must be an embarrassment for you two ladies to vote with such elegance among such (B) to (K) tripe. You two will go far in this World.

Quote:

At this point I should mention that I am accepting late submissions until midnight, and at this point the very next person to send me one is guaranteed at least one vote.

Thank you Dear BranShea and Pennyless for your votes. Your gullibilities are only exceeded by your good taste and brains. It must be an embarrassment for you two ladies to vote with such elegance among such (B) to (K) tripe. You two will go far in this World.

Quote:

At this point I should mention that I am accepting late submissions until midnight, and at this point the very next person to send me one is guaranteed at least one vote.

So said Alex the Hogmaster.

So I submitted the next definition but recieved no point.

I never have won a Hogwash game.

This is not fair so I declare myself the winner.

BranShea and Pennyless I award you two points each.

'Tis true that I said that, but with what I thought to be an obviously forked tongue. However, you have argued so persuasively that it may be truly said that you have made your point. You are awarded one point plus the first annual Zachary Cope Prize, which consists of a $500 stipend*, a lifetime supply of Rolaids, and an autographed copy of Cope's Early Diagnosis of the Acute Abdomen. This generous award was endowed by Mobil Corporation and the late Alistair Cooke so that those who cannot stop their bellyaching can at least diagnose it.

*in the form of store credit at Schipp's Fish Bait and Tackle, Barrow, Alaska

Disclaimer: Wordsmith.org is not responsible for views expressed on this site.
Use of this forum is at your own risk and liability - you agree to
hold Wordsmith.org and its associates harmless as a condition of using it.